Often called the "Last Great Race on Earth," Alaska's Iditarod will provide the backdrop and inspiration for my summer adventure in writing. I will travel to Alaska--explore, examine, live, and breathe the Iditarod--and then share my discoveries through writing for my students and all those who travel along with me through this blog.

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Only in Alaska: More Dogs and a Favorite Artist



 Even though today brought zero sun and more rain, it will probably be one of my favorites from the whole trip.    We ventured to Eagle River, AK to find more dogs and a pleasant surprise at the picturesque home and studio of "Alaska's Artist," Jon Van Zyle.  I could hardly believe it when I glanced at the children's books to find one of my all-time favorites, Sled Dogs Run, available for purchase.  Only at that moment did it register with me  that the famous artist we were visiting and one of my favorite illustrators were one and the same--Mr. Van Zyle himself!  I have shared his book with my classes for years, and then I was standing in the presence of the living, breathing illustrator.  When I expressed regret that I had not brought his book so that he could sign it, he quickly presented me with a lovely notecard with his original dogsled design on it which he signed for my classes so I could take the autograph home to put in the front of his book.   What an unexpected and wonderful gift!

Then, we went outside to one of the most beautiful dog yards ever.  We walked through a lovely flower garden to reach it and found it dotted with sun umbrellas, which Mr. Van Zyle explained, were there to provide the dogs shelter from the sunlight.  It was a lovely sight!  We got pretty wet, so once we had visited the dogs,  Mrs. Van Zyle said they wanted to give us a reward for venturing out into the rain "Just to say hello" to the dogs.  She brought us back into their  home and spread out prints from about 50 choices of Jon's amazing artwork on a table.  We were then invited to each choose one as a gift, and Mr. Van Zyle methodically autographed each.   This was just the most lovely ending to a perfect visit!



PS  This is for follower Trekka:
The sled dog today, a Siberian huskie, did have blue eyes!  Stay tuned for more info as we try to
answer his question about whether or not all huskies have blue eyes! 

2 comments:

  1. So go out at night
    with bright flash light
    If you see a bear
    don't pick a fight
    Just remember you don't have to outrun the bear,
    but you do have to outrun the guy with you there.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Trekka, See the June 29 post about bear!

    ReplyDelete